بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

“When the Messenger of Allāh صلى الله عليه وسلم passed away, I said to a man from the Anṣār: Let us go and ask the companions of the Messenger of Allāh صلى الله عليه وسلم, for they are many in number today.” He said to me, “You surprise me, O Ibn Abbās! Do you think the people will need you when there are among the people from the companions of the Messenger of Allāh صلى الله عليه وسلم those that are among them!” He said, “So I left him and I began to ask the companions of the Messenger of Allāh صلى الله عليه وسلم. If it reached me that a man had a narration, and I would go to his door and find him resting, I would put my upper garment behind my head and rest against his door, and the wind would blow dust over me. Then, when he would come out and see me, he would say, “O nephew of the Messenger of Allāh صلى الله عليه وسلم, what brought you here!? Why didn’t you send for me and I would have come to you!?” I would say, “No, it is more right that I come to you.” Then I would ask him about the hadeeth. That Anṣārí man lived until one day he saw me and the people were surrounding me asking me, and he said, “This young man understood better than I did!” [Abdul Al Fattah Abu Ghuddah – Safahat Min Sabr Al Ulama, 37]

 

Things to note:

✎ Abdullah ibn Abbas رضي الله عنه was only 13 when the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم passed away, he was extremely keen to gain knowledge, even at that young age.

✎Ibn Abbas رضي الله عنه had such high aspiration, that he wasn’t affected by an Ansari man, who believed that there was no need for him when he would seek knowledge, since each of the 4 caliphates, and other knowledgeable companions, were alive at the time.

✎Ibn Abbas رضي الله عنه would not wait for knowledge to come to him, he would GO to seek knowledge, even if the wind would blow dust at him, just waiting for the person who had a narration that was resting. 

✎The person who had a narration found it strange that Ibn Abbas رضي الله عنه, the NEPHEW of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم came to him, instead of the man going to him, but ibn Abbas found it right to go to him.

✎This high aspiration, and the eagerness to seek knowledge, lead Ibn Abbas to be one of the best scholars of all time, and made the Ansari man realize that Ibn Abbas was a lot more smarter than him, even at a young age.

 

What do we learn from this?

✎Having high aspiration for seeking knowledge is something we should all try to achieve.

 

Ibn-ul-Jawzí [d. 597AH] said: “From the signs of the perfection of the intellect is having high aspirations.” [Ṣayd-ul-Khāṭir] 

 

Ibn-ul-Qayyim said: “The perfection of every person is completed with these two things: aspirations which raise him and knowledge which gives him insight and guidance. For indeed, a person only misses out on the levels of happiness and success from these two angles, or from one of them.” [Miftaaḥ Daar as-Sa‘aadah]

 

✎Dont let people demotivate you to seek knowledge.

 

And Allah knows best.